January 15, 2009

WASHINGTON, DC - Congressmen David Dreier (R-San Dimas, CA), House Rules Committee Ranking Republican, and Adam Schiff (D-Pasadena, CA) introduced today a resolution commemorating the fifth anniversary of the successful Mars Rovers landing, which was executed in January 2004 by the La Canada Flintridge-based Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), which is managed by the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). 
 
“JPL is a tremendous source of local and national pride and I am proud to sponsor this resolution recognizing their tremendous achievements,” Dreier said.  “The Rover missions have exceeded expectations and brought us excellent research and unforgettable images over the past five years.  I congratulate the people of JPL for their achievements and wish them continued success in the years ahead.”

“In January 2004 I had the privilege of being in the control room at JPL when Spirit landed in Gusev Crater,” Schiff said.  “It was an amazing experience to watch the utter joy of dozens of scientists and engineers who had worked so hard and for so long on the Rover project.  I am honored to work with JPL to maintain its leading role in our space program and I look forward to celebrating the end of their sixth year on the surface in January 2010.”

The resolution, H. Res. 67, points to the fact that as of January 2009, the Spirit and Opportunity Mars Rovers Missions will have passed five years of successful operation on the surface of Mars, far exceeding the original 90-Martian mission requirement by a factor of 20, and they are continuing their missions of surface exploration and scientific discovery. 

The resolution states: “the House of Representatives commends the engineers, scientists, and technicians of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and Cornell University for their successful execution and continued operation of the Mars Exploration Rovers, Spirit and Opportunity and recognizes the success and significant scientific contributions of NASA’s Mars Exploration Rovers.”

Please click here to view a copy of the resolution.